Field of the Invention
The invention is related to a lubrication oil volume control device for use in a scroll compressor, and more particularly to a lubrication oil volume control device which is able to properly control the lubrication oil volume in accordance with a change in the angular speed (rpm) of the crankshaft in the scroll type compressor.
Scroll type compressors are used in household appliances such as a refrigerator and the like, since a conventional reciprocating type compressor generates a noise by its piston movement and occupies more volume than a scroll type compressor.
A conventional scroll type compressor is provided with a cylindrical chamber. An oil reservoir is formed in a bottom portion of the chamber which stores the lubrication oil. A power converting means is positioned above the oil reservoir for allowing the crankshaft to be rotated by a rotor and a stator enclosing the rotor. A compressing portion having a fixed scroll member and an orbiting scroll member is located at an upper portion of the chamber, for sucking lubricating oil through a suction passage installed at a bottom part of the crankshaft and supplying it to the compressing portion where it is needed.
However, the prior art device has a problem in that poor operation of the compressor occurs due to an excessive or insufficient oil volume which results from a volume control failure.
In order to prevent such problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 282183/1987 discloses a lubricator for a compressor. The lubricator can feed a sufficient quantity of lubricant even at the start-up or during low speed rotation of the compressor by fixing a pump rotor to the lower end of the main shaft to perform a centrifugal pumping action to an eccentric lubrication hole. The lower end section of the main shaft is surrounded by a pumping housing. A suction pipe is positioned on the bottom of the pumping housing. The pump rotor has a pressure feed groove and a through hole housing. Sealing members are provided respectively between the pump rotor and the pump housing and the supply pipe.
However, the lubricator in this invention is susceptible to leakage due to aging of the sealing member caused by time and by the chemical properties of oil and by other aging factors.